Time for another Top Ten Tuesday and this week’s theme is “Back To School” which can be anything from books you read in school or books you think should be required reading etc. So I decided to go with books I feel are required reading for any Sci-fi and Fantasy lovers out there!

I do have full reviews for each of these titles (which I am not going to link this time around) if you’d like to check them out!

These are also in no particular order and there are equal amounts of sci-fi and fantasy books here!

10.) A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

This book is simply amazing and definitely something you should check out if you’re a fantasy lover! Schwab weaves together some incredible world building and an action-packed plot focusing on a main character who has the magical ability to travel between the 4 parallel versions of London.

9.) The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

This is technically sci-fi but while reading you don’t get very many vibes of this except for the alien type creatures and some plot information you receive later on. It’s sci-fi though trust me! This is about a boy living in a town of men who can all hear everyone’s thoughts and when he learns a secret about said town he must flee for his life.

Very heartbreaking story but so, so good.

8.) Vicious by V. E. Schwab

Yes, another Schwab book! Basically if you’re a lover of SFF then just check her out period! This book is probably my favorite of hers and it involves morally ambiguous characters and super powers, what more could you ask for? It’s definitely a page turner!

7.) Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

This is one of those books that may not be for everyone but with the super unique formatting and the literal non-stop action I can’t help but recommend it for all sci-fi lovers. It has everything from a self-aware AI to creepy space viruses! There really is never a dull moment.

6.) Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff

I honestly recommend this book ALL the damn time but here I am again with it! This book has such creative world building and the characters were amazing too, tons of plot twists, and plenty of action as well. All around amazing fantasy book with all of the fantasy elements I personally look for. Who doesn’t love talking animal companions?

5.) Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West

Another fantasy book I recommend all the time which is also very underrated, it has some very unique world building along with four different retellings weaved into the plot as well (Hua Mulan, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Jane Austen’s Emma). It’s got some very heart warming and heart breaking moments for sure, overall amazing story though!

4.) The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid

This is sci-fi but the political intrigue and plots are very reminiscent of fantasy as well, the pacing is insanely fast and there’s non stop plot twists and action! You’ll also love the complete badass main character, Nemesis, who pretty much just kicks ass the entire book. She’s one tough cookie!

3.) Red Rising by Pierce Brown

If I were going to sum up why this should be required reading it’d just be me screaming because of how awesome this book is.

There are so many wonderful characters and it’s like a much more brutal and violent version of the Hunger Games except in space….well Mars but you get what I mean.

2.) An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

The world building is very Ancient Roman inspired, there’s loads of action, fantastic characters, and plenty of shock worthy plot twists. This has all of the wonderful fantasy elements most of us look for and is extremely entertaining!

1.) Every Heart A Doorway by Seanan McGuire

Very short, sweet, and to the point this book is magical and actually has some great world building for how short the story is. It’s about a home for “chosen one” children who have been kicked out of their magical worlds and must learn how to cope back in reality.

Thank you! Illuminae and Ember are fantastic I’m glad you loved them too! I also hope you enjoy Every Heart a Doorway but since you loved those other two it’s probably safe to say you will love this one as well! 🙂

I have never read any of these before but they look so good! Some of them I have seem in some book tags and they were highly recommended but most of them I have never seen before. So I will definitely be adding them to my TBR List, thanks for the great post! I always love finding new books to read even though I don’t technically need anymore books added to my ever growing pile. 🙂

Glad you found some new books to add to your TBR! I love being a book enabler and I 100% agree with you, I definitely don’t need anymore books added to my TBR either but I love finding new ones as well! 🙂

I totally agree with Illuminae! I am currently reading The Diabolic and I’m really enjoying it. Totally agree about Nemesis’ bad-assery. I liked the Darker Shade of Magic but every time I start book 2, I get in a slump-y mood. I also really want to read Every Heart a Doorway and An Ember in the Ashes. Great post 😀

Glad to hear you’re enjoying The Diabolic and that you also think Nemesis is a badass, I’d say for most people if you liked Illuminae you’ll probably enjoy the Diabolic as well so glad you enjoy both!
I haven’t started A Gathering of Shadows yet either because I feel I need to 100% focus on it and I kind of get into a slump mood as well.
Thank you! 🙂